The Promised Messiah and Mahdi — Page 9
THE PROMISED MESSIAH AND MAHDI have been created by God. Ultimately, the system of cause and effect ends with Him. He is the first cause of all causes. It is His power which is reflected in the universe. In the light of the moon or the light of the sun, it is in fact His power and His light which are reflected as if from behind a screen. He selects a man, perfects him spiritually, illuminates his mind and heart with revelation and raises him as a prophet. In his ignorance and foolishness, man sometimes begins to worship them and other created things, which may be awe inspiring, as God Almighty but these are only His creations. . The point is that all the forces in operation in the universe for the proper running of it do not operate on their own but rather it is. Divine power which operates through them. This idea is expressed in a verse in the Holy Quran (27:25) that the world is like a palace with floors paved with transparent glass, under which runs a strong current of water. An unaware person ignores the glass and is afraid to step lest he should tumble into the swift current. Thus an illusion is provided in understanding of a materialistic man. . It is God who changes the seasons. Just as in the physical world, night follows day and day follows the night, in the spiritual sphere when there is great mischief and darkness of materialism and worship of His creatures and created things, God the Gracious sends. His prophets to dispel the darkness and create faith in the Unity of. God and to strengthen righteous actions. It was such a period of great darkness, referred to in the Holy Quran as 'Corruption over land and sea' and a time of great need for great spiritual guidance, when the spiritual Sun of Islam the Holy Prophet Mohammad, peace be on him, appeared. He dispelled the darkness of polytheism and materialism and he established the pure unity of God and created a great spiritual revolution in the world. He was the greatest and chief of all the prophets and through him God perfected the evolution of religion -- Islam, the last spiritual guidance for mankind. . According to the Holy Quran, as God is God of all people and all ages, He sent His prophets to all nations. This is the result of His universal grace and beneficence. "There is no people to whom a Warner has not been sent". the Holy Quran (35:25) 9